1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an embroidery sewing machine and an embroidery pattern data editing device, and more particularly to those which execute automatic edits to sewing data on embroidery patterns to be embroidered so that the location and direction, and pattern size at the time the embroidery pattern is sewn are equal to those indicated by a sewing designation mark that has been drawn in advance on a work sheet.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventional home-use or domestic embroidery sewing machines of electronic control type are provided with a sewing mechanism including a sewing needle which is driven to vertically reciprocate and a thread loop catcher, or a hook, a feed mechanism for moving an embroidery frame whereby a work sheet such as a cloth is removably held, in each of two directions intersecting each other at right angles, a pattern data memory for storing pattern data on a plurality of embroidery patterns of, for example, "vehicles", "flowers", and "animals", and a display and a control panel. An operator operates the control panel and others to display a desired embroidery pattern and start embroidery sewing processing. The driving mechanism is controlled based on the selected pattern data such that the desired embroidery pattern with plural colors are sewn on the work sheet held by the embroidery frame by the sewing mechanism in cooperation with the driving mechanism.
Meanwhile, the embroidery pattern needs to be sewn at a predetermined location, in a designated direction, and in a designated size. To meet those three requirements, at first, the work sheet must be set in the embroidery frame in an accurate location and direction. Second, the sewing data that has been produced in advance must be edited to satisfy those sewing requirements.
Here, a simple explanation is made below on how to normally set a work sheet in an embroidery frame. The work sheet as stretched is put on an outer frame, while a positioning sheet is attached to an inner frame.
Subsequently, the work sheet is displaced to adjust its location on the outer frame so that a reference line (consisting of a vertical and lateral lines) printed on the positioning sheet coincides with a reference mark (e.g., a mark "+") that has been drawn in advance on the work sheet. The inner frame is then attentively inserted in the outer frame so that the reference mark does not deviate from the reference line. The work sheet is thus pinched between the outer and inner frames and set in the embroidery frame. If the reference mark deviates from the reference line even by a short distance or the direction of the work sheet to the frame inclines with respect to the reference line, furthermore, if the work sheet is not sufficiently stretched, the above setting operations of the work sheet in the embroidery frame should be repeated while detaching and attaching the work sheet from/to the outer frame to modify the location and direction of the work sheet and adjusting the stretching state of the same until all of the requirements are satisfied.
If satisfactory setting of the work sheet in the embroidery frame is completed, the sewing data produced in advance is edited to meet the sewing conditions and then embroidery patterns are sewn on the work sheet based on the edited sewing data.
For example, there is proposed an automatic sewing machine in Japanese patent (JP) application laid-open under publication No. 63(1988)-242297, in which, in case of sewing practical stitches such as a straight line, a preset stitch line for the practical stitch is drawn in advance on a work sheet and read in by an image sensor. Based on the stitch line taken by the image sensor, a pattern corresponding to the stitch is sewn on the work sheet.
In JP application laid-open No. 7(1995)-185159, disclosed is an embroidery sewing machine in which images of selected characters are displayed on an image plane or screen to execute thereon various edits, e.g., expansion and contraction of the image in each of vertical and lateral directions, oblique transformation like italic type font, or the fan-shaped arrangement of the characters in a curved line. In accordance with the edited image, an embroidery frame is adjusted to be placed at a start location of embroidery sewing.
Furthermore, in JP application laid-open No. 8(1996)-294590 is disclosed an embroidery sewing machine wherein an embroidery frame is moved to align a reference point imparted to a work sheet at a position below the needle and the reference point is registered, while a cross line is displayed on a screen. An embroidery pattern is sewn after the alignment of the cross line to the center of a pattern displayed on the screen.
As mentioned above, if using a positioning sheet to set a work sheet in an embroidery frame so that a reference line of the sheet coincides with a reference mark provided on the work sheet, the above mentioned troublesome modifying or adjusting operations while attaching and detaching the work sheet to/from the frame must be repeated until the requirements for setting of a work sheet in the frame, specifically, the location and direction, and the stretched state of work sheet, are all satisfied. Consequently, the embroidery sewing process requires a complicated preparatory work of setting the work sheet in the embroidery frame and great deal of time thereto, thus causing a deterioration in the efficiency of sewing work.
In the embroidery sewing machines disclosed in JP applications laid-open Nos. 7-185159 and 8-294590, final sewing data is first produced by edits such as expansion and contraction of sewing data on embroidery patterns to be sewn at a predetermined enlargement rate in each of a vertical and lateral directions. After the sewing start point (sewing reference point) on the work sheet is aligned with the needle by movement of the embroidery frame, an embroidery sewing process is started. Accordingly, such the movement of the embroidery frame by a short distance for the alignment to the needle requires complicated preparatory operations before sewing, and a lot of time. The edit processing requires key control with various keys to input parameter and the like. Similar to the above, there are also problems such as a complicated preparatory work and a deterioration in the sewing efficiency.
The automatic sewing machine disclosed in JP application laid-open No. 63(1988)-242297 executes the sewing of practical stitches simply based on the preset stitch line that has been drawn in advance on the work sheet and read in by the image sensor. This machine is not designed so as to be able to designate sewing conditions such as the size and direction of an embroidery pattern to be formed with a plane region.